obsolete Hear it!

obsolete definition

ob·so·lete (äb′sə lēt′, äb′sə lēt′)

adjective

  1. no longer in use or practice; discarded
  2. no longer in fashion; out-of-date; passé
  3. Biol. rudimentary or poorly developed as compared with its counterpart in other individuals of a related species, the opposite sex, etc.; vestigial: said of an organ, etc.

Etymology: L obsoletus, pp. of obsolescere, to go out of use < ob- (see ob-) + *-solescere (< exolescere, to grow out of use < ex-, ex- + ? alescere, to increase: see adolescent)

transitive verb obsoleted -·let′ed, obsoleting -·let′·ing

to make obsolete, as by replacing with something newer

Related Forms:

Webster's New World College Dictionary Copyright © 2005 by Wiley Publishing, Inc., Cleveland, Ohio.
Used by arrangement with John Wiley & Sons, Inc.

obsolete Synonyms

obsolete

modif.

antiquated, archaic, out-of-date; see old 2, 3, old-fashioned. See syn. study at old.


Webster's New World Roget's A-Z Thesaurus Copyright © 1999 by Wiley Publishing, Inc., Cleveland, Ohio.
Used by arrangement with John Wiley & Sons, Inc.

obsolete Usage Examples

Modifying Another Word

  • virtually: These types of aircraft make the need for runways virtually obsolete.

Adjective complement with noun phrase

  • render: The collapse of the USSR had rendered this schism effectively obsolete.

Modifies a noun

  • pesticide: This includes used oil, batteries, asbestos, unwanted or obsolete pesticides and veterinary wastes.

Used with adjective complement

  • render: Software isn't rendered obsolete in exactly the way cars are.
obsolete usage examples (more)

The word usage examples above have been gathered from various sources to reflect current and historical usage. They do not represent the opinions of YourDictionary.com.

obsolete quotes

Either war is obsolete or men are.

-Fuller, R(ichard) Buckminster

Our whole economy is based on planned obsolescence† We make good products, we induce people to buy them, and then the next year we deliberately introduce something that will make these products old-fashioned, out of date, obsolete.

-Stevens, Brooks

obsolete quotes (more)

Webster's New World Dictionary of Quotations Copyright © 2005 by Chambers Harrap Publishers Ltd. All rights reserved. Published by Wiley, Hoboken, NJ. Used by arrangement with John Wiley & Sons, Inc.

Link to this page:

Cite this page:

MLA Style

"obsolete." Webster's New World College Dictionary. 2009

  • Your Dictionary. 5 July 2009
  • <www.yourdictionary.com/obsolete>

APA Style

obsolete. (2009). In Webster's New World College Dictionary

  • Retrieved July 5th, 2009, from www.yourdictionary.com/obsolete

Comments:

Please or Register to post a comment